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The funnest thing about shooting all brass shotshells.


H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619

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Something was mentioned in another thread, and it made me realize what was of the most fun things about shooting all brass shotshells is.

 

Is it that you always get your brass back without having to ask like you often do for plastic ones?

 

Nope.

 

Is it the really cool way they look when you are using them?

 

Uhn uh.

 

Is it myriad of questions you get when people wonder how you can possibly make 'em work with smokeless powder?

 

Nada.

 

Well then what is it?

It's all the dust and confetti like debris that spits out of the end of your barrel and makes a mess on the firing line from the disintegrating wads.  It's just more funner than plastic wads.  And you get a lotta fun commentary about it as it happens.

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8 minutes ago, Chuck Steak said:

How much does the brass cost ?

How many times can you expect to reload them ?

Can you use smokeless as well as BP ?

What kind of primers do they take ?

 

Asking for a friend.

 

Out of stock everywhere but about $1/ea for Magtech.

 

Reload them indefinitely number of times if cleaned and cared for.

 

Magtech are made for black powder only.  

 

Magtech take large pistol primers. 

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2 hours ago, Warden Callaway said:

 

Out of stock everywhere but about $1/ea for Magtech.

 

Reload them indefinitely number of times if cleaned and cared for.

 

Magtech are made for black powder only.  

 

Magtech take large pistol primers. 

Magnum large pistol primers are my preffered option for smokey powders.  The primer post sets above quite a bit of powder.

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I always enjoy seeing plastic wads propelled the the holy black stuck on the targets          GW

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I have not purchased any for a while.  But they are fairly easy to find online, and Cabelas carries them as well.

 

I don't keep track of how many times I reload 'em.  I just keep going until they split, but I am pretty sure I get several reloads.

 

I use Winchester large pistol primers.

 

I use Red Dot Smokeless powder.    I don't know why people think you can't use smokeless with them.   I have some older Remington all brass hulls mixed in with my stuff, and they seem to be internally and externally identical to the Magtech brass.  I now show you a pic of two of them...

1731924754_RemingtonBrass.thumb.jpg.587ac836c38678884297a2a86e6fbffd.jpg

 

About the only difference between these two shells is the markings.   The only difference between these and the Magtech is that center area being raised.  And as you can see, one of them is clearly labeled SMOKELESS.  Internally I can see no difference between these and the Magtechs.   I therefore assert that you can use smokeless in the Magtechs.   And I do so just that all the time.  

 

 

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1 hour ago, H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 said:

one of them is clearly labeled SMOKELESS. 

 

Back in the day when this brass hull was loaded, they had a bulk smokeless that was somewhat equal to black powder.  Modern powder generate far greater pressure.   

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My shells are REM-UMC and a few Winchesters.  Also have some Alcans which are more heavy duty but use a harder to find primer.  The REM-UMC hulls I have loaded at least 50 times each with no splits.  And no telling how many times they were loaded before I got them 20 years ago.  One of the hulls had a small split when I got it but it never got bigger.  I do not crimp them.

 

I do know of a few folks who load smokeless in the brass hulls.  Not quite as simple as BP where most anything will work more or less.

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I like the reloading process of brass shells.  Of course it takes longer than plastic hulls and plastic wads, but, I get into a zone and it’s relaxing.  I work out in my shop, alone, no music, no noise and just focus on what I’m doing.  I have a routine that I follow, it works for me and as long as I follow it I know that each shell is done right. 

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I have been advised to NOT run them in a '97.

 

Also learned MagTech shells run long, the "finished" length with crimp would maybe fit but not the raw uncrimped shells.

 

Add to that... Some '97s have "short" chambers.

 

I'm a beginner, but this beginner says "no" to brass in a '97.

 

Now, if you want to study more, decide to crimp or cut the raw shells down, then maybe go for it; by the time you figure out those details, you are maybe no longer a beginner.

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On 1/22/2021 at 5:32 PM, H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 said:

I have not purchased any for a while.  But they are fairly easy to find online, and Cabelas carries them as well.

 

I don't keep track of how many times I reload 'em.  I just keep going until they split, but I am pretty sure I get several reloads.

 

I use Winchester large pistol primers.

 

I use Red Dot Smokeless powder.    I don't know why people think you can't use smokeless with them.   I have some older Remington all brass hulls mixed in with my stuff, and they seem to be internally and externally identical to the Magtech brass.  I now show you a pic of two of them...

1731924754_RemingtonBrass.thumb.jpg.587ac836c38678884297a2a86e6fbffd.jpg

 

About the only difference between these two shells is the markings.   The only difference between these and the Magtech is that center area being raised.  And as you can see, one of them is clearly labeled SMOKELESS.  Internally I can see no difference between these and the Magtechs.   I therefore assert that you can use smokeless in the Magtechs.   And I do so just that all the time.  

 

 

 

So, H.K., that "Smokeless" shell is the first one I've seen.  Seems to use a small primer?  I have a number of the "Best" and seen plenty more.  I've always wondered how old they were.  We've all heard stories of the paper hulls swelling and jamming in wet combat conditions in wartime so they started using brass hulls.  I'm pretty sure they would be shooting smokeless in those.  I thought maybe that's where these came from,  But seeing your other one marked Smokeless makes me wonder.  I know brass shells date to the old west time period but I don't know exactly what those were like or how far back these go.  Remington and UMC merged in 1912 so some time after that.

 

I talked a guy out of these 20 years ago.   Thought about opening them then but didn't. :)

 

DSC05646-small.jpg

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8 hours ago, John Kloehr said:

I have been advised to NOT run them in a '97.

 

Also learned MagTech shells run long, the "finished" length with crimp would maybe fit but not the raw uncrimped shells.

 

Add to that... Some '97s have "short" chambers.

 

I'm a beginner, but this beginner says "no" to brass in a '97.

 

Now, if you want to study more, decide to crimp or cut the raw shells down, then maybe go for it; by the time you figure out those details, you are maybe no longer a beginner.

 

M19 12ga. brass-hull ammo was issued for the 1897s (and other military shotguns) to replace paper-hull SG ammo.

The Mag-Tech 2.5" brass hulls I load with BP are the same OAL before crimping as GI crimped ammo.

 

brass sg 1.jpg

brass sg 5.jpg

 

REFERENCE

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I have been running the Magtechs in my 97's and my 87s for years with no problems.   I do put a very slight taper crimp on them to hold the overshot card in place and to facilitate loading, but I am not sure I have too.   I have a handful of Rocky Mountain Cartridge shells that came to me loaded, and they cycled through my 97s magazine with no problem.  Those are so thick, you CAN'T crimp then, and you'll need to glue the shot card in place.  They also cycle through an 870 no problem.   They run through, but not work the action, on a Browning Auto 5, even though the same powder charge in a AA will.   I have not tried them in my 1100

 

The Magtechs are 2.5" long.   The chambers on old 97s are 2-5/8"   They will fit.   An  old 87 has a 2.5" chamber, but I had mine lengthened to 2-3/4" anyway.   

I have some of the reproduction WWII style Winchester all brass shells.  According to Winchester, just like the originals, they are smokless and boxer primed for reloading.   

All I need to do is find some sort of a shoot where I need 00 Buck to fire off the factory loading so I can then reload 'em for SASS.size.thumb.JPG.5c8b1271715e649894d5762721fbb3ae.JPGcrimp.thumb.JPG.8f4e988548a1d436c8972d4b88f38a54.JPG

On the left is a Magtech.  The Right is a Winchester.

Heck, heres this for fun...

1564946439_BrassPackaging.thumb.JPG.7acae977310ba23943a3a3272d37631d.JPG

 

 

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Every now and then I have been known to put several feathers in with the shot, now  starts  a conversation...

 

I just get small feathers from a hobby store and stuff in a few above the shot.  Some will burn up but many will stay intact and cause one to ask, "did I just shoot a bird?"

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11 hours ago, PaleWolf Brunelle, #2495L said:

 

M19 12ga. brass-hull ammo was issued for the 1897s (and other military shotguns) to replace paper-hull SG ammo.

The Mag-Tech 2.5" brass hulls I load with BP are the same OAL before crimping as GI crimped ammo.

You, sir, are not a beginner.

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2 hours ago, H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 said:

The Magtechs are 2.5" long.   The chambers on old 97s are 2-5/8"   They will fit.   An  old 87 has a 2.5" chamber, but I had mine lengthened to 2-3/4" anyway.   

Magech brass hull spec is 2.45" long. I just measured one of mine at 2.441. Magtech chamber spec is 2.75. While they will physically fit in a 2.625 chamber, that is not in spec for the hull.

 

I don't know enough to know why a full 1/4 inch extra chamber length is specified, but that is the specification.

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56 minutes ago, Hashknife Cowboy said:

Every now and then I have been known to put several feathers in with the shot, now  starts  a conversation...

 

I’ll be your huckleberry, what have you put in?  I’ve thought about glitter but heard that you really can’t see it.  How do the feathers hold up?

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I may need to invest in 50 or so of these when they come available. Are any stores, with reasonable prices, accepting back-orders?

 

They'd probably work pretty well in a TTN. Right now I cut down AAs that won't hold a crimp and use a roll crimp when i (rarely) shoot smokey powder. 

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1 hour ago, John Kloehr said:

Magech brass hull spec is 2.45" long. I just measured one of mine at 2.441. Magtech chamber spec is 2.75. While they will physically fit in a 2.625 chamber, that is not in spec for the hull.

 

I don't know enough to know why a full 1/4 inch extra chamber length is specified, but that is the specification.

 

As long as the fired length of the shell is the same as or shorter than the length of the chamber, you are good to go.

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1 hour ago, Hashknife Cowboy said:

Every now and then I have been known to put several feathers in with the shot, now  starts  a conversation...

 

How about starting THAT "conversation" on a new thread?  <_<

 

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35 minutes ago, H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619 said:

As long as the fired length of the shell is the same as or shorter than the length of the chamber, you are good to go.

 

Almost all of my shotguns (including TTN, Rossi, and BSS SxSs) are chambered for 3" 12 gauge shells.

I've never fired 3" ammo in any of them.

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"...All I need to do is find some sort of a shoot where I need 00 Buck to fire off the factory loading so I can then reload 'em for SASS..."

 

go to a major three gun - they shoot them , or hunt turkey maybe ? 

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38 minutes ago, watab kid said:

"...All I need to do is find some sort of a shoot where I need 00 Buck to fire off the factory loading so I can then reload 'em for SASS..."

 

go to a major three gun - they shoot them , or hunt turkey maybe ?

 

BUCKshot = DEER

BIRDshot= Birds (like turkeys)

;)

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